American's End

When William Randolph Hearst sold the little Fort Worth Record in 1925, it was the exception that proved the rule that he would never, so long as Hearst was HEARST, sell or disband a newspaper. But last week all rules were off in the Hearst empire of 26 newspapers, 13 magazines and assorted enterprises. The famed, New York American was dead, dropped like a cold potato. The queen-pin of his domain,* the paper that was called his journalistic "love child," on which he lavished money and affection and talent, was killed after a five-day conference.

Killing the New York American had been a logical move for Mr. Hearst for a long time, and a succession of business advisers had urged him to do it. Last year it capped its historic record of operations in the red with an all-time high deficit of around $1,000,000. What finally precipitated the obsequies, outsiders were not told, but shutting off this one big drain on Hearst resources could have only a beneficial effect upon the market for securities which Mr. Hearst was planning to sell. Delayed in passage for weeks by successive amendments had been his registrations with the Securities & Exchange Commission of $35,500,000 of debentures-- $22,500,000 for Hearst Publications, Inc., $13,000,000 for Hearst Magazines, Inc. (TIME, April 26).

In an open letter to Editor & Publisher, Publisher Hearst explained: "The newspapers that are favorites with me are the newspapers that are favorites with the public. . . . Unsuccessful newspapers are a luxury which cannot be afforded and which one has no RIGHT to afford in-definitely."

If newspaper publishing has a championship class, certainly it is the Manhattan morning field. In sophistication as well as numbers that public is a U. S. news publisher's greatest challenge. The young man from California who, 42 years ago, took up that challenge, was courageous as well as rich. He bargained the late John Roll McLean down from $360,000 to $180,000 for his wobbly Morning Journal and then proceeded to spend $7,500,000 combatting fiery Joseph Pulitzer's World on its own ground. He boldly bought away Pulitzer's ablest men, including Arthur Brisbane and Morrill Goddard, the genius who gave him the American Weekly. He made the Spanish-American War his personal affair for the Journal'?, sake. The transition of the old Journal into the American, effected in three steps between 1901 and 1903, followed an excess of boldness which nearly earned Hearst the blame for President McKinley's assassination.

But as times changed, the flamboyant Hearst-Pulitzer technique was outgrown by the Manhattan morning public. The more sedate and reliable Times, Herald and Tribune crowded the World and the American down upon the subway trade.

Then came the tabloid News to take away that trade. Hearst started the tabloid Mirror in answer, but he was really competing with himself. That the American outlived the World by six years may have been some satisfaction, however expensive, but Mr. Hearst's deepest publishing sensibilities must have been involved by the thought of his cheap Mirror outliving the pride of his glorious youth.

Last week the Mirror was handed the American's daily Associated Press membership. It was thus in a position to draw level pictorially with the rival Daily News by splitting with it the $150,000 yearly

New York fee for the A. P.'s Wirephoto service. Hearst's Evening Journal, occupying the same building as the American and already merged with it in some departments, got most of its features (Maury Paul's "Cholly Knickerbocker," O. O. Mclntyre's "New York Day by Day," Alice Hughes's Shopping column, and "Bringing Up Father" and "Skippy"). Damon Runyon and Robert ("Believe It Or Not") Ripley went to the Mirror. The Sunday American containing the powerful American Weekly supplement was kept intact, with added features from the Journal. Thus, Hearst's only Manhattan duplication now was in the Sunday field, but both papers were doing well, the Sunday American with 1,036,297 circulation, the Sunday Mirror with 1,319,919.

Chief assets which the Journal received from the American were its classified advertising and its publisher, W. R. Hearst Jr., ablest of the Chief's five sons. He and his rivals at once ran big ads in each other's papers bidding for the American's, classified business. Another problem facing young Hearst was the American'?, 2,800 employes. "I want you to know," he said, "that my father and I are deeply concerned over the fact that anyone will lose a job because of this necessary move, and that we are both very hopeful that the eventual result of this consolidation will be employment for a great number of people.'' If Publisher Hearst, 74, should leave the publishing scene in the near future, the disposition of his empire would fall on shoulders other than those which would have carried the load two years ago. Young "Bill" Hearst's shoulders are a little broader and steadier; and directly behind the wheel now are a sturdy pair belonging to Thomas Justin White, general business manager of the Hearst organization since 1934. But no longer squared for any Hearst contingency are the Herculean shoulders of sagacious John Francis ("Jack") Neylan, the broad-gauge San Francisco lawyer, up from newshawk, who in 1925 became counsel for all "W. R." Hearst's enterprises.

Bringing some kind of corporate order into the tangled jungles of Hearst finance, and damming up expensive drains like the American, were "Jack" Neylan's foremost objectives. Yet last week the profession learned that, while still Mr. Hearst's friendly adviser, "Jack" Neylan had no immediate part in the demise of the American, and had had no part in the SEC registrations. Jack Neylan turned in his Hearst portfolio two years ago to live out his own life without empire pressure.

Mr. Hearst's Tom White reached the U. S. soon after the Chicago World's Fair of 1893, where his mother achieved a fine success with an exhibit of Irish lace. He grew up in Chicago. After serving Morgan Partner Edward Stettinius as private secretary, he went into the paper business. Hearst hired him as an expert on book paper, soon made him boss of magazines, then of newspapers, finally general manager. He is an ideal executive for Hearst, good-humored yet exacting, with a tough constitution requiring practically no sleep. He rules the Hearst publications in all matters except editorial content, which Mr. Hearst still supervises personally with a breadth and minuteness of attention that continue amazing. Long inured to sudden Hearst shakeups and economy drives, newspapermen were startled most last week by the thought: "If Hearst would kill the American, where would he stop?" Nervous Hearstlings watched for the flash of Tom White's ax in other cities where Hearst dailies have steadily been losing Hearst money: Atlanta, Milwaukee, Rochester, Seattle.

*King-pin is the San Francisco Examiner, his first paper. The New York American was his second. His best money-maker is Good Housekeeping, with an operating profit last year of $3.800,000.

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